Men’s Hockey Falls To Michigan State 2-1

Despite outshooting the Spartans 29-13, the Nittany Lions were unable to capitalize on multiple scoring chances and ended their two game point with streak with a 2-1 loss. The Nittany Lions are now 5-19-2 on the year.

Patrick Koudys got on the board first for Penn State when a slap shot from the point ricocheted in front of the net and beat Spartan goaltender Jake Hildebrand (29 saves, .966 save %) 43 seconds into the game. The Nittany Lions were able to kill a Tommy Olczyk hooking penalty and went into the first intermission with a 1-0 lead.

The second period was more of the same, until Michigan State’s Joe Cox bounced one in off the skate of Kenny Brooks halfway through the period to tie the score at one. Going into the third period, Penn State had the 22-5 shot advantage.

In the third period, Penn State quickly drew a penalty two minutes in. Unfortunately, a David Goodwin slashing penalty twenty seconds later negated any momentum the Nittany Lions gained, which tilted the ice in favor of the Spartans. Both teams traded chances until Matt Berry was able to corral the loose puck in the slot and chipped it past Matthew Skoff (11 saves, .846 save %) with five minutes left to give the Spartan’s the final 2-1 lead. Penn State pulled Skoff with about 1:45 left, but were unable to capitalize and Michigan State was able to walk out Pegula with five points this weekend.

“I thought we played well, especially defensively,” said coach Guy Gadowsky after the game. “I really felt that we had to do more to get chances. We had our fair share but we weren’t putting the puck in the net.”

The Nittany Lions are back in action again next Friday when they’ll take on Michigan in Ann Arbor.

Games Notes

Both Nate Jensen and Luke Juha were out again tonight after being injured in Penn State’s 4-0 win against Michigan last Saturday.

Kenny Brooks had to be helped off the ice after taking a puck to the knee during the second period. He was able to return shortly after, however, and said the injury wasn’t serious after the game.

Before the game, Gadowsky delivered at least 20 Canyon pizzas to the student section to thank them for their continued support this year.

About Author

Greg is a senior majoring in energy engineering at Penn State. He is a big fan of Pittsburgh sports and sandwiches with coleslaw and french fries. You can email him at [email protected] or find him at the Phyrst drunkenly requesting the band to play "One Headlight."